TPWBI Chapter 128

Warning: Do not read while eating!!!

At first, Yang Yi thought Hei Lie was exaggerating. After all, from afar, the royal city of the Western Continent looked magnificent and beautiful.

The riverside surrounding the city also seemed quite lovely. How could it possibly be as bad as Hei Lie claimed?

But as he gradually drew closer, his expression grew uglier and uglier. He was overwhelmed by the stench.

“This river water…”

When Yang Yi approached and got a clear look at the river, his vision almost went blurry. The sight was indescribably revolting. The stench was so pungent it assaulted his senses. Just breathing felt like a luxury.

“This is way too filthy!”

The moment Yang Yi opened his mouth, the stench from the turbid river, filled with floating animal entrails and excrement, hit him full force, making him stumble back several steps and start gagging.

Even though he had mentally prepared himself, facing it in reality still shocked him deeply.

The other members of the Spark people didn’t look any better. All of them were visibly shaken.

Although they were proud of being part of the Spark Tribe, years of being pressured by the Western Continent had ingrained in them a deep, unshakable impression of its superiority. That impression was now beginning to crumble.

They had always believed this place to be a world of advanced civilization. Who would have thought it could be this filthy!

Even outside the Spark Tribe, few other tribes would ever allow a river to become so disgustingly dirty.

This river wasn’t a stagnant, man-made moat like the one Yi City had first dug. It was a flowing great river. Yet even so, it had been defiled to such an appalling and foul state. These people truly treated the river as their garbage dump!

The warriors with sharper senses quietly put on the masks they had prepared in advance.

After all, everyone had long heard of the Western Continent cities being “notorious for their stench”, so Yang Yi had made some basic preparations beforehand as well.

He had thought it might have been exaggerated, but now it seemed like a very wise decision indeed!

“This river should be the royal city’s main source of drinking water, right? With this level of pollution, aren’t they afraid of getting sick from drinking it?” Yang Yi asked in bewilderment.

The team’s doctor, Mo, explained, “They don’t actually understand these things. When people from the Western Continent came to our hospitals for treatment before, they couldn’t make sense of many of our practices. They didn’t trust them either.”

Over the past ten years, medicine in the Spark Tribe had advanced rapidly. Everyone there already knew about things like the germ theory, so much of this had become common knowledge to them.

But unlike Yang Yi, the Western Continent had no such “cheat”. Its medical field was still in an extremely backward state.

At present, surgery was carried out by skilled barbers, which made it easy to imagine just how poor their medical practice was.

A minor illness could easily turn fatal after their so-called “treatment”.

Because of their lack of medical knowledge, people didn’t usually blame the barbers for poor skills. Instead, they simply believed that the patient had lost the gods’ favor and that their life had been taken back early.

The people of the Western Continent liked to travel to the Eastern Continent for treatment and medicine, simply because their own medical techniques were so primitive that recovery was entirely a matter of luck.

Although the Spark Tribe had only recently begun its development, and there were still many tools they couldn’t produce, some medical theories were still unclear.

After all, though they had books to learn from, everything depended on their own effort. Yang Yi couldn’t provide any truly professional guidance. Time had been short, so their progress was limited.

Even so, compared to the Western Continent’s absurd practices, their medical skills were still far more advanced.

“Even among those who do believe, they’re all nobles. These things haven’t reached the common folk,” Hei Lie said.

Looking at the river that had seemed so beautiful from afar but turned terrifying up close, Yang Yi suddenly lost all desire to enter the city.

But curiosity still drove him to keep walking toward the city. He wanted to see for himself what this royal city was truly like.

When they reached the city gates, Qiao was already there waiting for them. Upon seeing them, he eagerly stepped forward to greet them.

“This morning, I heard the crisp chirping of birds at dawn and guessed that you would probably arrive at the royal city today,” Qiao said, stepping up to Yang Yi and performing a grand salute.

“Honorable Divine Envoy, welcome.”

Over the years, Qiao had done quite well for himself on the Western Continent. Rather than focusing on managing his trading caravans, he preferred mingling in the circles of nobility.

These days, he rarely went out for trade himself. Most of his time was spent operating within the Western Continent, mingling among the aristocracy by relying on the goods he brought from the Spark Tribe.

When he learned that Yang Yi and Hei Lie’s group were coming to the royal city, he came early to personally welcome them.

“It’s been such a long time. I almost didn’t recognize you,” Yang Yi said sincerely, looking him over.

Qiao had always loved dressing up, like a flamboyant peacock.

Every time he arrived at the Spark Tribe, he would change into elaborate garments, afraid of appearing anything less than a gentleman.

Yang Yi had thought those outfits were already the height of extravagance, but now Qiao was even more ostentatious. His clothes are more intricate, adorned with all kinds of jewelry.

He wore tall wooden clogs on his feet, a wide-brimmed hat on his head, and carried a finely crafted walking cane in his hand.

This outfit made him appear a whole head taller, giving him a particularly slender and elegant look.

Unlike the Eastern Continent, where people admired men who were strong and muscular, the nobles of the Western Continent preferred men who were tall and lean.

Qiao’s face was painted with makeup, and it wasn’t light—it was heavily applied. On top of that, he wore a wig as an accessory.

Even from afar, one could smell the thick fragrance clinging to him. He was like a walking pouch of essential oils. The scent was so strong that it carried several meters away.

But when a fragrance was too heavy, it could easily become suffocating. The thick aroma made Yang Yi’s head spin a little.

“This is the real me.”

Qiao was clearly satisfied with his current appearance. Compared to his days of wandering about, he much preferred the life he had now.

Under Qiao’s lead, Yang Yi and his group entered the royal capital.

Sitting high atop an ostrich, they immediately drew countless gazes.

Most people on the Western Continent had never seen anyone riding an ostrich before. The appearance of people from the Eastern Continent differed greatly from their own, so they naturally attracted a lot of attention.

Yet, the deeper they went into the city, the darker Yang Yi’s expression became. He finally understood why Qiao was wearing such tall wooden clogs.

The garbage on the streets was at least ten centimeters deep! There was every kind of filth imaginable—human waste, household trash, even animal entrails—all mixed together into a dark, foul-smelling sludge.

Anyone walking by would have their feet sink right into it if they weren’t wearing high wooden clogs, leaving behind deep holes with every step they pulled out.

The thick layers of garbage were sticky and slimy, yet the people here moved across them with surprising agility, completely unbothered, as if long accustomed to such road conditions.

Yang Yi furrowed his brows tightly and quietly put on a mask. The stench was just too overwhelming!

“Is this the latest popular accessory in the Spark Tribe?”

Qiao, seeing everyone putting on masks, asked curiously, completely unaware of the reason behind it.

Yang Yi finally understood why Qiao had drenched himself in such heavy perfume. It was to mask the stench from the outside world!

“Yes, it’s our newest outfit,” Hei Lie lied smoothly without blinking.

Qiao found it rather amusing, though it didn’t fit his own sense of beauty, so he didn’t press further.

Along the way, reality kept slapping Yang Yi in the face. He had thought the streets might just be dirty near the entrance of the city and would get better further in. But after walking for more than half a day, he saw no improvement at all.

And the royal capital wasn’t as grand as he had imagined. The roads were extremely narrow, everything was filthy, and the houses were all low and shabby.

There were also small two-story houses, but even the second floors weren’t very tall. One would probably have to stoop while standing up there.

The common folk they passed by all looked dull and dusty. Although, unlike many regions of the Eastern Continent, they weren’t half-naked, it was still clear that they were just as impoverished.

As they walked along the main avenue, the gap between the rich and the poor was strikingly obvious.

The wealthy, like Qiao, seemed eager to hang every expensive fabric, piece of gold, and jewel they owned on their bodies.

And it wasn’t as if they dressed carelessly. Though Yang Yi didn’t like that style, he could still tell that it was refined and deliberate in its own way.

The poor, on the other hand, wore extremely old clothes. Those with some skill had patched their garments countless times. Those without simply wore rags.

Yang Yi looked around at the buildings. Not all the houses here were built of stone. Many were made of wooden planks, packed tightly together.

They stood side by side in crowded rows, with an incredibly high population density.

Residential and commercial areas weren’t separated but mixed together, making this central avenue appear messy and chaotic.

All kinds of animals were also running about the streets, often relieving themselves as they went.

“Gwa-gaa—gwa-gaa—”

[It’s too dirty, too dirty! My feet have never been this filthy before!]

Little White, who was following beside them, was on the verge of a breakdown, muttering nonstop. The whole goose seemed completely out of sorts.

Even Little Gray was much quieter than usual, his steps growing heavier and heavier.

Yang Yi could hear him sighing continuously, though unlike Little White, he didn’t complain out loud.

“Just hang in there a little longer. It’ll get better once we reach the castle,” Yang Yi comforted them.

Maybe it was only the commoners’ area that was this filthy. The castle surely wouldn’t be the same.

Such a beautiful castle, with so many slaves to maintain it. It couldn’t possibly be as filthy as the slums.

“Gwa-gaa—gwa-gaa—”

[Eh? Why is there a butt sticking out over there?]

Little White muttered, nosily waddling closer to get a better look.

But as soon as he got near, something foul-smelling and indescribable dropped down, nearly splattering onto him.

“Gwa-gaa—gwa-gaa—”

Little White flapped and hopped frantically, completely losing it. Crazy! Crazy! The people in this place are insane!

As a goose with spiritual intelligence, Little White was extremely fond of cleanliness. Unless out hunting in the wild, it was practically obsessed with hygiene.

It even had its own private quarters, always kept neat and spotless. If there was even the slightest bit of mess, it would find the cleaning staff and have them tidy up immediately.

But now, upon arriving in the Western Continent, it had nearly been splattered by human waste! If Yang Yi hadn’t held it back, it would have pecked that exposed butt to shreds.

No, so filthy! A noble goose like itself couldn’t possibly bring itself to touch something that dirty!

“Oh, Master, let’s go! Let’s leave this horrifying place!”

Little White kept honking and muttering in panic, its feathers all puffed up in outrage.

Yang Yi was completely dumbfounded, surrounded by question marks and exclamation points in his mind.

What was even more terrifying was that the Western Continent’s passersby were utterly unfazed. No one even looked surprised by what had just happened.

At most, someone muttered a curse about bad luck, and that was it.

Qiao looked a little embarrassed and gave a fake cough. “Our place isn’t quite the same as the Spark Tribe’s.”

He had never thought there was anything wrong with it before. Sure, it was filthy, but it was simply how things were. Yet after returning from the Spark Tribe, he couldn’t help but feel that everything here was far too crude.

Still, the environment was what it was. Qiao couldn’t change it. After coming back, he gradually got used to these sights again.

But when facing people from the Spark Tribe, he couldn’t shake off a sense of discomfort.

When he thought of the Spark Tribe’s clean and spacious streets, and then looked down at the ground here, completely buried under heaps of garbage, even his famously eloquent tongue couldn’t save face.

“What’s the castle like?” Yang Yi finally asked with difficulty.

The moment Qiao heard that, he perked right up and began speaking enthusiastically:

“The royal castle is magnificent and dazzling, luxurious and beautiful. Every part of it reflects the capital’s nobility and wealth. Just the gold used for its decoration could form a mountain, and it’s inlaid with countless gems. The grandest hall is so vast that it takes eight thousand candles to light it fully…”

Right up until they were nearly at the castle gates, Qiao was still going on and on about how lavish the castle was. But as for the answer Yang Yi truly wanted, he still hadn’t given one.

As they stepped into the royal palace gardens, before even entering the castle itself, Yang Yi had already lost all desire to go inside, despite how grand, majestic, and exquisitely built the castle appeared from afar.

With his sharp eyesight, Yang Yi noticed someone at one of the castle windows pouring out a basin of water. Judging by its color, texture, and the way it splattered onto the umbrellas of the people passing below, he instantly understood what it really was.

Yang Yi forced a polite yet awkward smile. Is it still too late to turn back now?